This invention relates to four novel strains of Bacillus thuringiensis (the xe2x80x9cBTS02617A strainxe2x80x9d, the xe2x80x9cBTS02618A strainxe2x80x9d, the xe2x80x9cBTS02654B strainxe2x80x9d and the xe2x80x9cBTS02652E strainxe2x80x9d), each of which produces crystallized proteins (the xe2x80x9cBTS02617A crystal proteinsxe2x80x9d, the xe2x80x9cBTS02618A crystal proteinsxe2x80x9d, the xe2x80x9cBTS02654B crystal proteinsxe2x80x9d and the xe2x80x9cBTS02652E crystal proteinsxe2x80x9d, respectively) which are packaged in crystals (the xe2x80x9cBTS02617A crystalsxe2x80x9d, the xe2x80x9cBTS02618A crystalsxe2x80x9d, the xe2x80x9cBTS02654B crystalsxe2x80x9d and the xe2x80x9cBTS02652E crystalsxe2x80x9d, respectively) during sporulation. The BTS02617A, BTS02618A, BTS02654B and BTS02652E strains were deposited under the provisions of the Budapest Treaty at the Belgian Coordinated Collections of Microorganismsxe2x80x94Collection Laboratorium voor Microbiologie Belgium (xe2x80x9cBCCM-LMGxe2x80x9d), R.U.G., K. Ledeganckstraat 35, B-9000 Gent.
This invention also relates to an insecticide composition that is active against Lepidoptera and that comprises the BTS02617A, BTS02618A, BTS02654B or BTS02652E strain, as such, or preferably the BTS02617A, BTS02618A, BTS02654B or BTS02652E crystals, crystal proteins or the active component(s) thereof as an active ingredient.
This invention further relates to a gene (the xe2x80x9cbTS02618A genexe2x80x9d), which is present in the genome of the BTS02617A, BTS02618A, BTS02654B and BTS02652E strains and which encodes an insecticidal protein (the xe2x80x9cBTS02618A protoxinxe2x80x9d) that is found in the BTS02617A, BTS02618A, BTS02654B and BTS02652E crystals. The BTS02618A protoxin is the protein that is produced by the BTS02617A, BTS02618A, BTS02654B and BTS02652E strains before being packaged into their respective BTS02617A, BTS02618A, BTS02654B and BTS02652E crystals.
This invention still further relates to a toxin (the xe2x80x9cBTS02618A toxinxe2x80x9d) which can be obtained (e.g., by trypsin digestion) from the BTS02618A protoxin. The BTS02618A toxin is an insecticidally active protein which can be liberated from the BTS02617A crystals, the BTS02618A crystals, the BTS02654B crystals, and the BTS02652E crystals, which are produced by the BTS02617A strain, the BTS02618A strain, the BTS02654B strain and the BTS02652E strain, respectively. This toxin and its protoxin have a high activity against a wide range of lepidopteran insects, particularly against Noctuidae, especially against Spodoptera and Agrotis spp., but also against other important lepidopteran insects such as Pyralidae, particularly the European corn borer, Ostrinia nubilalis, and Yponomeutidae such as Plutella xylostella. This new characteristic of the BTS02618A protoxin and toxin (xe2x80x9c(pro)toxinxe2x80x9d), i.e., the combination of activity against different economically important Lepidopteran insect families such as Noctuidae, Yponomeutidae and Pyralidae, makes this (pro)toxin an ideally suited compound for combatting a wide range of insect pests by contacting these insects with the (pro)toxin, e.g., by spraying or by expressing the bTS02618A gene in plant-associated bacteria or in plants. The BTS02618A toxin is believed to represent the smallest portion of the BTS02618A protoxin which is insecticidally effective against Lepidoptera.
This invention yet further relates to a chimeric gene that can be used to transform a plant cell and that contains the following operably linked DNA fragments:
1) a part of the bTS02618A gene (the xe2x80x9cinsecticidally effective bTS02618A gene partxe2x80x9d) encoding an insecticidally effective portion of the BTS02618A protoxin, preferably a truncated part of the bTS02618A gene (the xe2x80x9ctruncated bTS02618A genexe2x80x9d) encoding just the BTS02618A toxin;
2) a promoter suitable for transcription of the insecticidally effective bTS02618A gene part in a plant cell; and
3) suitable 3xe2x80x2 end transcript formation and polyadenylation signals for expressing the insecticidally effective bTS02618A gene part in a plant cell.
This chimeric gene is hereinafter generally referred to as the xe2x80x9cbTS02618A chimeric genexe2x80x9d.
This invention also relates to:
1) a cell (the xe2x80x9ctransformed plant cellxe2x80x9d) of a plant, such as corn or cotton, the genome of which is transformed with the insecticidally effective bTS02618A gene part, preferably the bTS02618A chimeric gene; and
2) a plant (the xe2x80x9ctransformed plantxe2x80x9d) which is regenerated from the transformed plant cell or is produced from the so-regenerated plant and their seeds, the genome of which contains the insecticidally effective bTS02618A gene part, preferably the bTS02618A chimeric gene, and which is resistant to Lepidoptera.
This invention still further relates to
1) a microbial organism, such as B. thuringiesis or Pseudomonas spp., the genome of which is transformed with all or part of the bTS02618A gene; and
2) a microbial spore, containing a genome which is transformed with all or parts of the bTS02618A gene.
B. thuringiesis (xe2x80x9cBtxe2x80x9d) is a Gram-positive bacterium which produces endogenous crystals upon sporulation. The crystals are composed of proteins which are specifically toxic against insect larvae. These crystal proteins and corresponding genes have been classified based on their structure and insecticidal spectrum (Hxc3x6fte and Whiteley, 1989). The four major classes are Lepidoptera-specific (cryI), Lepidoptera- and Diptera-specific (cryII), Coleoptera-specific (cryIII), and Diptera-specific (cryIV) genes.
The fact that conventional submerged fermentation techniques can be used to produce Bt spores on a large scale makes Bt bacteria commercially attractive as a source of insecticidal compositions.
Gene fragments from some Bt strains, encoding insecticidal proteins, have heretofore been identified and integrated into plant genomes in order to render the plants insect-resistant. However, obtaining expression of such Bt gene fragments in plants is not a straightforward process. In order to achieve optimal expression of an insecticidal protein in plant cells, it has been found necessary to engineer each Bt gene fragment in a specific way so that it encodes a part of a Bt protoxin that retains substantial toxicity against its target insects (European patent application (xe2x80x9cEPAxe2x80x9d) 86/300,291.1 and 88/402,115.5; U.S. patent application Ser. No. 821,582, filed Jan. 22, 1986).
In accordance with this invention, four novel Bt strains, i.e., the BTS02617A, BTS02618A, BTS02654B and BTS02652E strains, are provided. The BTS02617A, BTS02618A, BTS02654B and BTS02652E crystals and crystal proteins, the BTS02618A protoxin and toxin produced by the strains during sporulation, and insecticidally effective portions of the BTS02618A protoxin, as well as equivalents of these crystals, crystal proteins, protoxin, toxin and insecticidally effective protoxin portions, each possess insecticidal activity and can therefore be formulated into insecticidal compositions against Lepidoptera in general, and particularly against Noctuidae, such as Agrotis spp. (cutworms such as Agrotis ipsilon), Mamestra spp. (e.g., the cabbage moth, Mamestra brassica) and Spodoptera spp. (armyworms, such as Spodoptera exigua, Spodoptera frugiperda, Spodoptera littoralis and Spodoptera litura), against Pyralidae (e.g., the European corn borer, Ostrinia nubilalis) and Yponomeutidae (such as Plutella xylostella) which are major pests of various economically important crops, such as corn, cotton and many vegetables such as Brassicas.
Also in accordance with this invention, a plant cell genome is transformed with the insecticidally effective bTS02618A gene part, preferably the truncated bTS02618A gene, or an equivalent thereof such as a modified, synthetic bTS02618A gene. It is preferred that this transformation be carried out with the bTS02618A chimeric gene. The resulting transformed plant cell can be used to produce transformed plants, seeds of transformed plants and plant cell cultures consisting essentially of the transformed cells. The transformed cells in some or all of the tissues of the transformed plants: 1) contain the insecticidally effective bTS02618A gene part as a stable insert in their genome, and 2) express the insecticidally effective bTS02618A gene part by producing an insecticidally effective portion of its BTS02618A protoxin, preferably its BTS02618A toxin, thereby rendering the plant resistant to Lepidoptera. The transformed plant cells of this invention can also be used to produce, for recovery, such insecticidal Bt proteins.
Further in accordance with this invention, a process is provided for rendering a plant resistant to Lepidoptera by transforming the plant cell genome with the insecticidally effective bTS02618A. gene part, preferably the truncated bTS02618A gene, or an equivalent thereof. In this regard, it is preferred that the plant cell be transformed with the bTS02618A chimeric gene.
Yet further in accordance with this invention, there are provided the BTS02618A protoxin, the insecticidally effective portions of such protoxin and the BTS02618A toxin, as well as functional parts of the BTS02618A toxin, as well as the bTS02618A gene, the insecticidally effective bTS02618A gene part, the truncated bTS02618A gene and the chimeric bTS02618A gene, as well as their equivalents.
Also in accordance with this invention, a DNA sequence, either natural or artificial, encoding the BTS02618A protoxin or insecticidally effective portions thereof, such as the toxin, is provided.
Also in accordance with this invention are provided an insecticidal composition against Lepidoptera, particularly Noctuidae, Pyralidae and Yponomeutidae, and a method for controlling Lepidoptera, particularly Noctuidae, Pyralidae and Yponomeutidae, with the insecticidal composition, wherein the insecticidal composition comprises the BTS02617A, BTS02618A, BTS02654B or BTS02652E strain, crystals and/or crystal proteins or the BTS02618A protoxin, toxin and/or insecticidally effective protoxin portions or their equivalents.
The BTS02618A protoxin of this invention can be isolated in a conventional manner from the BTS02617A strain, deposited on July, 2 at the BCCM-LMG under accession number LMG P-12592, the BTS02618A strain, deposited on Jul. 2, 1992 at the BCCM-LMG under accession number LMG P-12593, the BTS02654B strain, deposited on Jul. 2, 1992 at the BCCM-LMG under accession number LMG P-12594, or the BTS02652E strain deposited on Mar. 1, 1993 at the BCCM-LMG under accession number LMG P-13493. For example, the BTS02617A, BTS02618A, BTS02654B or BTS02652E crystals can be isolated from sporulated cultures of their respective strain (Mahillon and Delcour, 1984), and then, the BTS02618A protoxin can be isolated from the crystals according to the method of Hxc3x6fte et al. (1986). The protoxins can be used to prepare monoclonal or polyclonal antibodies specific for the protoxin in a conventional manner (Hxc3x6fte et al., 1988). The BTS02618A toxin can be obtained by protease (e.g., trypsin) digestion of the BTS02618A protoxin.
The bTS02618A gene can be isolated in a conventional manner. The bTS02618A gene can be identified in the BTS02617A, BTS02618A, BTS02654B or BTS02652E strain, using the procedure described in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 821,582, filed Jan. 22, 1986, and in EPA 86/300,291.1 and 88/402,115.5 (which are incorporated herein by reference). The bTS02618A gene was identified by: digesting total DNA from one of the above strains with restriction enzymes; size fractionating the DNA fragments, so produced, into DNA fractions of 5 to 10 Kb; ligating these fractions to cloning vectors; screening the E. coli, transformed with the cloning vectors, with a DNA probe that was constructed from a region of the cryIG gene (Smulevitch et al., 1991; Gleave et al., 1992).
The term xe2x80x9cbTS02618A genexe2x80x9d as used herein includes a DNA sequence encoding the BTS02618A protoxin or toxin or functionally equivalent variants thereof. Indeed, because of the degeneracy of the genetic code, some amino acid codons can be replaced with others without changing the amino acid sequence of the protein. Furthermore, some amino acids can be substituted by other equivalent amino acids without significantly changing the insecticidal activity of the protein. Also, changes in amino acid composition in regions of the molecule, different from those responsible for binding and toxicity are less likely to cause a difference in insecticidal activity of the protein. Such equivalents of the gene include DNA sequences hybridizing to the DNA sequence of the BTS02618A toxin or protoxin of SEQ ID. No. 4 and encoding a protein with the same insecticidal characteristics as the BTS02618A (pro)toxin, of this invention. In this context, the term xe2x80x9chybridizationxe2x80x9d refers to conventional hybridization conditions, most preferably stringent hybridization conditions.
The term xe2x80x9cfunctional parts of the BTS02618A toxinxe2x80x9d as used herein means any part(s) or domain(s) of the toxin with a specific structure that can be transferred to another (Bt) protein for providing a new hybrid protein with at least one functional characteristic (e.g., the binding and/or toxicity characteristics) of the BTS02618A toxin (Ge et al., 1991). Such parts can form an essential feature of the hybrid Bt protein with the binding and/or toxicity characteristics of the BTS02618A protein. Such a hybrid protein can have an enlarged host range, an improved toxicity and/or can be used in a strategy to prevent insect resistance development (European Patent Publication (xe2x80x9cEPxe2x80x9d) 408 403; Visser et al., 1993).
Alternatively, the 5 to 10 Kb fragments, prepared from total DNA of the BTS02617A or BTS02618A or BTS02654B or BTS02652E strain, can be ligated in suitable expression vectors and transformed in E. coli, and the clones can then be screened by conventional colony immunoprobing methods (French et al., 1986) for expression of the toxin with monoclonal or polyclonal antibodies raised against the BTS02618A toxin.
Also, the 5 to 10 Kb fragments, prepared from total DNA of the BTS02617A or BTS02618A or BTS02654B or BTS02652E strain, can be ligated in suitable Bt shuttle vectors (Lereclus et al., 1992) and transformed in a crystal minus Bt-mutant. The clones are then screened for production of crystals (detected by microscopy) or crystal proteins (detected by SDS-PAGE).
The so-identified bTS02618A gene was sequenced in a conventional manner (Maxam and Gilbert, 1980) to obtain the DNA sequence. Hybridization in Southern blots and sequence comparison indicated that this gene is different from previously described genes encoding protoxins and toxins with activity against Lepidoptera (Hxc3x6fte and Whiteley, 1989).
An insecticidally effective part of the bTS02618A gene, encoding an insecticidally effective portion of its protoxin, and a truncated part of the gene, encoding just its toxin, can be made in a conventional manner after sequence analysis of the gene. The amino acid sequence of the BTS02618A protoxin and toxin was determined from the DNA sequence of the bTS02618A gene and the truncated bTS02618A gene. By xe2x80x9can insecticidally effective partxe2x80x9d or xe2x80x9ca partxe2x80x9d of the bTS02618A gene is meant a DNA sequence encoding a polypeptide which has fewer amino acids than the BTS02618A protoxin but which is still toxic to Lepidoptera.
In order to express all or an insecticidally effective part of the bTS02618A gene or an equivalent gene in E. coli, in other Bt strains and in plants, suitable restriction sites can be introduced, flanking each gene or gene part. This can be done by site-directed mutagenesis, using well-known procedures (Stanssens et al., 1989; White et al., 1989). In order to obtain improved expression in plants, it may be preferred to modify the codon usage of the bTS02618A gene or insecticidally effective bTS02618A gene part to form an equivalent, modified or artificial gene or gene part in accordance with PCT publications WO 91/16432 and WO 93/09218; EP 0,358,962 and EP 0,359,472. For obtaining enhanced expression in monocot plants such as corn, a monocot intron also can be added to the bTS02618A chimeric gene, and the DNA sequence of the bTS02618A gene part can be further changed in a translationally neutral manner, to modify possibly inhibiting DNA sequences present in the gene part by means of site-directed intron insertion and/or by introducing changes to the codon usage, e.g., adapting the codon usage to that most preferred by the specific plant (Murray et al., 1989) without changing significantly the encoded amino acid sequence.
The insecticidally effective bTS02618A gene part or its equivalent, preferably the bTS02618A chimeric gene, encoding an insecticidally effective portion of the BTS02618A protoxin, can be stably inserted in a conventional manner into the nuclear genome of a single plant cell, and the so-transformed plant cell can be used in a conventional manner to produce a transformed plant that is insect-resistant. In this regard, a disarmed Ti-plasmid, containing the insecticidally effective bTS02618A gene part, in Agrobacterium tumefaciens can be used to transform the plant cell, and thereafter, a transformed plant can be regenerated from the transformed plant cell using the procedures described, for example, in EP 0,116,718, EP 0,270,822, PCT publication WO 84/02,913 and European Patent Application (xe2x80x9cEPAxe2x80x9d) 87/400,544.0 (which are also incorporated herein by reference), and in Gould et al. (1991). Preferred Ti-plasmid vectors each contain the insecticidally effective bTS02618A gene part between the border sequences, or at least located to the left of the right border sequence, of the T-DNA of the Ti-plasmid. Of course, other types of vectors can be used to transform the plant cell, using procedures such as direct gene transfer (as described, for example in EP 0,233,247), pollen mediated transformation (as described, for example in EP 0,270,356, PCT publication WO 85/01856, and U.S. Pat. No. 4,684,611), plant RNA virus-mediated transformation (as described, for example in EP 0,067,553 and U.S. Pat. No. 4,407,956), liposome-mediated transformation (as described, for example in U.S. Pat. No. 4,536,475), and other methods such as the recently described methods for transforming certain lines of corn (Fromm et al., 1990; Gordon-Kamm et al., 1990) and rice (Shimamoto et al., 1989; Datta et al., 1990) and the recently described method for transforming monocots generally (PCT publication WO 92/09696).
The resulting transformed plant can be used in a conventional plant breeding scheme to produce more transformed plants with the same characteristics or to introduce the insecticidally effective bTS02618A gene part in other varieties of the same or related plant species. Seeds, which are obtained from the transformed plants, contain the insecticidally effective bTS02618A gene part as a stable genomic insert. Cells of the transformed plant can be cultured in a conventional manner to produce the insecticidally effective portion of the BTS02618A protoxin, preferably the BTS02618A toxin, which can be recovered for use in conventional insecticide compositions against Lepidoptera (U.S. patent application Ser. No. 821,582; EPA 86/300291.1.).
The insecticidally effective bTS02618A gene part, preferably the truncated bTS02618A gene, is inserted in a plant cell genome so that the inserted gene is downstream (i.e., 3xe2x80x2) of, and under the control of, a promoter which can direct the expression of the gene part in the plant cell. This is preferably accomplished by inserting the bTS02618A chimeric gene in the plant cell genome. Preferred promoters include: the strong constitutive 35S promoters (the xe2x80x9c35S promotersxe2x80x9d) of the cauliflower mosaic virus of isolates CM 1841 (Gardner et al., 1981), CabbB-S (Franck et al., 1980) and CabbB-JI (Hull and Howell, 1987); and the TR1xe2x80x2 promoter and the TR2xe2x80x2 promoter (the xe2x80x9cTR1xe2x80x2. promoterxe2x80x9d and xe2x80x9cTR2xe2x80x2 promoterxe2x80x9d, respectively) which drive the expression of the 1xe2x80x2 and 2xe2x80x2 genes, respectively, of the T-DNA (Velten et al., 1984). Alternatively, a promoter can be utilized which is not constitutive but rather is specific for one or more tissues or organs of the plant (e.g., leaves and/or roots) whereby the inserted bTS02618A gene part is expressed only in cells of the specific tissue(s) or organ(s). For example, the insecticidally effective bTS02618A gene part could be selectively expressed in the leaves of a plant (e.g., corn, cotton) by placing the insecticidally effective gene part under the control of a light-inducible promoter such as the promoter of the ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase small subunit gene of the plant itself or of another plant such as pea as disclosed in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 821,582 and EPA 86/300,291.1. Another alternative is to use a promoter whose expression is inducible (e.g., by temperature or chemical factors).
The insecticidally effective bTS02618A gene part is inserted in the plant genome so that the inserted gene part is upstream (i.e., 5xe2x80x2) of suitable 3xe2x80x2 end transcription regulation signals (i.e., transcript formation and polyadenylation signals). This is preferably accomplished by inserting the bTS02618A chimeric gene in the plant cell genome. Preferred polyadenylation and transcript formation signals include those of the octopine synthase gene (Gielen et al., 1984) and the T-DNA gene 7 (Velten and Schell, 1985), which act as 3xe2x80x2-untranslated DNA sequences in transformed plant cells.
The insecticidally effective bTS02618A gene part can optionally be inserted in the plant genome as a hybrid gene (EPA 86/300,291.1; Vaeck et al., 1987) under the control of the same promoter as a selectable marker gene, such as the neo gene (EP 0,242,236) encoding kanamycin resistance, so that the plant expresses a fusion protein.
All or part of the bTS02618A gene, encoding an anti-lepidopteran protein, can also be used to transform other bacteria, such as a B. thuringiensis which has insecticidal activity against Lepidoptera or Coleoptera. Thereby, a transformed Bt strain can be produced which is useful for combatting a wide spectrum of lepidopteran and coleopteran insect pests or for combatting additional lepidopteran insect pests. Transformation of bacteria with all or part of the bTS02618A gene, incorporated in a suitable cloning vehicle, can be carried out in a conventional manner, preferably using conventional electroporation techniques as described in Mahillon et al. (1989) and in PCT Patent publication WO 90/06999.
The BTS02617A, BTS02618A, BTS02654B or BTS02652E strain also can be transformed with all or an insecticidally effective part of one or more foreign Bt genes such as: the bt18 gene (EP 0,358,557) or another Bt gene coding for an anti-Lepidoptera protein; and the bt109P gene (PCT publication WO 91/16433), coding for an anti-Coleoptera protein. Thereby, a transformed Bt strain can be produced which is useful for combatting an even greater variety of insect pests (e.g., Coleoptera and/or additional Lepidoptera).
Transformation of the BTS02617A, BTS02618A, BTS02654B or BTS02652E strain with all or part of a foreign Bt gene, incorporated in a conventional cloning vector, can be carried out in a well known manner, preferably using conventional electroporation techniques (Chassy et al., 1988) or other methods, e.g., as described by Lereclus et al. (1992).
Each of the BTS02617A, BTS02618A, BTS02654B or BTS02652E strains can be fermented by conventional methods (Dulmage, 1981; Bernhard and Utz, 1993) to provide high yields of cells. Under appropriate conditions which are well understood (Dulmage, 1981), the BTS02617A, BTS02618A, BTS02654B and BTS02652E strains each sporulate to produce crystal proteins containing the BTS02168A protoxin in high yields.
An insecticidal, particularly anti-lepidopteran, composition of this invention can be formulated in a conventional manner using the BTS02617A, BTS02618A, BTS02654B or BTS02652E strain or preferably their respective crystals, crystal proteins or the BTS02168A protoxin, toxin or insecticidally effective protoxin portion as an active ingredient, together with suitable carriers, diluents, emulsifiers and/or dispersants (e.g., as described by Bernhard and Utz, 1993). This insecticide composition can be formulated as a wettable powder, pellets, granules or dust or as a liquid formulation with aqueous or non-aqueous solvents as a foam, gel, suspension, concentrate, etc. The concentration of the BTS02617A, BTS02618A, BTS02654B or BTS02652E strain, crystals, crystal proteins, or the BTS02618A protoxin, toxin or insecticidally effective protoxin portions in such a composition will depend upon the nature of the formulation and its intended mode of use. Generally, an insecticide composition of this invention can be used to protect a field for 2 to 4 weeks against Lepidoptera with each application of the composition. For more extended protection (e.g., for a whole growing season), additional amounts of the composition should be applied periodically.
A method for controlling insects, particularly Lepidoptera, in accordance with this invention preferably comprises applying (e.g., spraying), to a locus (area) to be protected, an insecticidal amount of the BTS02617A, BTS02618A, BTS02654B or BTS02652E strain, spores, crystals, crystal proteins or the BTS02168A protoxin, toxin or insecticidally effective protoxin portions, preferably the BTS2168A toxin. The locus to be protected can include, for example, the habitat of the insect pests or growing vegetation or an area where vegetation is to be grown.
To obtain the BTS02618A protoxin or toxin, cells of the BTS02617A, BTS02618A, BTS02654B or BTS02652E strain can be grown in a conventional manner on a suitable culture medium and then lysed using conventional means such as enzymatic degradation or detergents or the like. The protoxin can then be separated and purified by standard techniques such as chromatography, extraction, electrophoresis, or the like. The toxin can then be obtained by trypsin digestion of the protoxin.
The BTS02617A, BTS02618A, BTS02654B or BTS02652E cells can also be harvested and then applied intact, either alive or dead, preferably dried, to the locus to be protected. In this regard, it is preferred that a purified BTS02617A, BTS02618A, BTS02654B or BTS02652E strain (either alive or dead) be used, particularly a cell mass that is 90.0 to 99.9% of the BTS02617A, BTS02618A, BTS02654B or BTS02652E strain.
The BTS02617A, BTS02618A, BTS02654B, or BTS02652E cells, crystals or crystal proteins or the BTS02618 protoxin, toxin, or insecticidally effective protoxin portion can be formulated in an insecticidal composition in a variety of ways, using any number of conventional additives, wet or dry, depending upon the particular use. Additives can include wetting agents, detergents, stabilizers, adhering agents, spreading agents and extenders. Examples of such a composition include pastes, dusting powders, wettable powders, granules, baits and aerosol sprays. Other Bt cells, crystals, crystal proteins, protoxins, toxins, and insecticidally effective protoxin portions and other insecticides, as well as fungicides, biocides, herbicides and fertilizers, can be employed along with the BTS02617A, BTS02618A, BTS02654B or BTS02652E cells, crystals or crystal proteins or the BTS02618 protoxin, toxin or insecticidally effective protoxin portions to provide additional advantages or benefits. Such an insecticidal composition can be prepared in a conventional manner, and the amount of the BTS02617A, BTS02618A, BTS02654B or BTS02652E cells, crystals or crystal proteins or the BTS02618A protoxin, toxin or insecticidally effective protoxin portion employed depends upon a variety of factors, such as the insect pest targeted, the composition used, the type of area to which the composition is to be applied, and the prevailing weather conditions. Generally, the concentration of the BTS02618A protoxin, insecticidally effective protoxin portions or toxin will be at least about 0.1% by weight of the formulation to about 100% by weight of the formulation, more often from about 0.15% to about 0.8% by weight of the formulation.
In practice, some insects can be fed the BTS02618A protoxin, toxin, insecticidally effective protoxin portion or mixtures thereof in the protected area, that is in the area where such protoxin, toxin and/or insecticidally effective protoxin portion has been applied. Alternatively, some insects can be fed intact and alive cells of the BTS02617A, BTS02618A, BTS02654B or BTS02652E strain or transformants thereof, so that the insects ingest some of the strain""s protoxin and suffer death or damage.
The following Examples illustrate the invention. The FIGURE and the sequence listing referred to in the Examples are as follows: